SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Friday, December 03, 2010
Sunny, high 70s F, breezy

As I write this I am sitting on our sunny balcony (C321) in my swimsuit watching Santo Domingo float by, about 3 p.m. EST.

This port surprised us today. We expected to get off and back on the ship quite quickly. Jarasin, our room steward said that the colonial city was interesting, and when we saw a shuttle to the “old city” for $5 round trip per person we decided to board. “Willis” introduced himself on the bus as a representative of the Ministry of Tourism and if we wanted a tour with him, it would be an extra $5. That was a bargain to us. About 20 people on the bus agreed and when we reached the colonial area across the river from port area, we followed Willis on a walking tour. He told us that Santo Domingo was the first European city in the New World and now the biggest city in the Caribbean with a population of 3 ½ million people. ___________ is the second largest city of the Dominican Republic and has a population of 2 million. The population of the DR is 9 million.

Willis told us that the whole island was called Santo Domingo or Hispaniola after its discovery, but after struggles with the French, the island was divided into Haiti and Santo Domingo of the West. Eventually the French part, Haiti, gained independence in 1804. At some point Haiti and the French controlled the whole island, but the Dominican Republic gained its own independence in 1844. This is an island where the people in Haiti speak French or Creole and the people in the DR speak Spanish. Santo Domingo is definitely a big city with lots of traffic and activity.

We started our tour near the home and fortress walls of Christopher Columbus’ son. The house (looked like a palace, columns, made of huge stone) was built in 1611. Willis showed us the first cathedral in the New World and some of the first buildings, like one where Christopher Columbus lived. The streets were cobblestone and again the houses reminded me of those in New Orleans. We visited the National Pantheon where their heroes are entombed. There was an eternal flame, the country’s flags, and a lone soldier marching a very slow cadence in front of the tombs. It was a solemn sight.

We visited a shop where young artisans were making jewelry with amber, larimar, and black coral. Another stop was a market. In the old city square is another shopping area with small shops. We stepped into a supermarket and a couple shops. There is a Hard Rock Café here, but it was not open yet for lunch. Men are offering beaded necklaces for $1, as well as packs of post cards, 10 for $5. I got the post cards. I do wish the statue we passed near the river was one of them, I could not find one anywhere. The huge statue depicts a pair of oxen pulling a cart of sugar cane. This seems to be a bygone industry in most of the islands but is rich in their history.

Today I was thinking of grade school where I first learned about Christopher Columbus and his discovery of the New World. The “West Indies” we were learning about with spices, sugar cane, and tobacco all seemed so exotic. Now I have been to so many islands in the “West Indies!” I pray that granddaughters B1 and B2 are learning about geography and the history of the world to enrich their lives.

We are far out to sea now and I will continue after dinner.

We dined again in the Horizon Court. It is hard to believe how many people eat there for dinner. We headed to the Vista Lounge for Comedy Showtime with Tom Briscoe. He is from NYC and was quite funny. Because we sat in the front row, he would ask Tim for agreement about his jokes about women. One routine was about the difficulty of picking out pantyhose for his wife when he did not know her size. I noticed a couple two seats away from us did not even laugh or smile at one joke. I wondered why they even came to the show. The theater was packed with people who did think he was funny and others were upset that they had to wait until the next show.

TK’s Takes: Bill London and Dave mentioned TK and his photo of Marie Osmond on the morning show today. Everyone loves that photo. TK said that the cruise director staff finally found a pool game that got people involved. All you had to do was be upright and breathing to play. It was the most attended poolside activity this cruise.